Road trauma perceptions and the potential influence of the media

The United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety (2011–2020) recognises the urgency of addressing global road trauma. Road crashes and attempts to reduce risky driving, including public education campaigns, receive media attention in many countries. In Australia, road fatalities have declined significantly. However, the extent of awareness about this success and of fatalities overall is unclear. A survey of 833 Australian drivers revealed the majority of participants under-estimated fatalities. Unexpectedly, some under-estimates appear based on recollections of media reports. The findings suggest lack of awareness of the extent of road deaths and that, paradoxically, media reports might contribute to under-estimations. This represents a major public health challenge. Engaging community support for road safety, relative to other health/safety messages, may prove difficult if the extent of road trauma is misunderstood. Misperceptions about fatality levels may be a barrier to road users adopting safety precautions or supporting further road safety countermeasures.

[1]  M Cameron,et al.  World Report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention. , 2004 .

[2]  Judy J. Fleiter,et al.  How do other people influence your driving speed? Exploring the 'who' and the 'how' of social influences on speeding from a qualitative perspective , 2010 .

[3]  Torbjørn Rundmo,et al.  Cross-cultural comparisons of traffic safety, risk perception, attitudes and behaviour , 2009 .

[4]  Julie Hatfield,et al.  The role of risk-propensity in the risky driving of younger and older drivers , 2009 .

[5]  T Petroulias.  Community attitudes to road safety: 2009 survey report , 2009 .

[6]  F. McKenna,et al.  Risk taking from the participant's perspective: the case of driving and accident risk. , 2006, Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association.

[7]  Sheila Jasanoff,et al.  The political science of risk perception , 1998 .

[8]  B Elliott.  The psychology of fear appeals revisited , 2003 .

[10]  Åsa Boholm,et al.  Comparative studies of risk perception: a review of twenty years of research , 1998 .

[11]  T. W. Milliken.  Road safety. , 1967, The New Zealand medical journal.

[12]  Katherine M. White,et al.  Psychosocial factors influencing mobile phone use while driving , 2007 .

[13]  E. Krug,et al.  Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020. , 2012, Injury.

[14]  Margaret M. Peden,et al.  World Report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention , 2004 .

[15]  K. White,et al.  Promoting Public Health Messages: Should We Move Beyond Fear-Evoking Appeals in Road Safety? , 2007, Qualitative health research.